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the candles and this is different, after what happened in that town. president obama will be personally delivering the thoughts and prayers on behalf of the nation to a community reeling from an unthinkable crime. right now he is meeting with victims' families and first responders as you look at hall before participating in a vigil to remember the 26 victims, massacred inside an elementary school. most of them children, no older than seven. the first funeral for one of the seven-year-olds, will be held tomorrow. thank you for joining us for special coverage of the school tragedy in newtown, connecticut. the president is expected to speak and will offer mourners words of comfort. ed henry is live in newtown, just outside. tell us more of what the president is doing there right

now. >>reporter: a soft rain is falling, the president is in the high school behind me through the trees. he is meeting with the families. they have been through such a traumatic couple of days. yet despite the temperatures, despite the difficulties, people have been lining up waiting to get into the high school for the rare prayer vigil. the red cross is giving out teddy bears to children and giving own blankets to people who are frigid in newtown. they need warmth given what they have been through. i spoke to a man who knew two people who worked at the school, a teacher and the principal we heard so much about fighting to save others. he knew two killed and he knew a child who lived. we have to remember the folks who lived are traumaized, who heard and saw some of the shooting, going through a tough time. it has been personal for the president, as well, he was

fighting back tears on friday. he said he is not just president but a parent, as well, and he is meeting with some of family members of victims and he meet with first responders. he will thank them for their heroic efforts at the crime scene and what they have done to help heal the community. the president will make some remarks. we are told by his aides the president wrote most of this speech. he was doing some rewrites on air force one on the way to connecticut. he will make it personal and from the heart. >>bret: we have heard politicians talking about gun control on sunday shows. we have heard about a lost policy prescriptions here in washington. do you think the president will get into policy talk at all in this speech tonight? >>reporter: the science i have is he will steer clear of policy talk whether it is gun criminal or how we deal and treat people with mental illnesses in this

country which is an important issue that has popped up. he will avoid that tonight. as you mentioned, the mayor bloomberg from new york city was on a sunday show today pushing the president hard saying he owes the american people, and republicans are saying second amendment is a cherished right. the bottom line from the white house aides is the president doesn't think this is the time or place, tonight, and he knows there will an great debate in the days ahead. he set high expectation on friday when he said he wants meaningful act and he will face pressure to follow through on that but tonight the aides say this is about prayers. >>bret: he has done this before. he has had practice. >>reporter: absolutely. in tucson, he gave reports for republicans and democrats and

independents saying he spoke for an entire nation. it wasn't just speaking for democrats. same after aurora he met the victims in the hospital, folks who survived that shooting at the movie theater. again, he is going through this and that is why he will face treasure in the second term to act. >>bret: thank you, ed. 26 lives were taken inside the school. each of them, of course, young and beautiful. we learn about the children who brought smiles and lit up rooms and the adult, a teacher who died trying to shield her students from gunfire. and others whose actions likely saved likes. the unfathomable loss felt far beyond newtown, connecticut, complete strangers coming from across the country to offer their support and condolences. >> could not sleep last night

turn on the news, that matter the channel it is on. the least i can do with the holidays approaching. molly line is live in newtown with more. molly, what are we learning? >>reporter: we are seeing the faces to match with the 20 names of the children. one picture we have today, jack pinto a huge giant fan, six, in 1st grade. he loves sports and he is honored tonight by one of his favorite players, victor cruz, a giants player, of course, write on his gloves today. and olivia just six years old, family friends created a memorial fund on facebook, filled with christmas-themed photos. >>bret: these are all tough to go through. en families who survived the

incident are suffering, obvious ly. >> chris wallace this morning had a chance to speak with a father whose child survived the massacre. and his son was inside when the gunman came in a classroom and shot the little boy's teacher. take a listen. >> the children witnessed the shooter come to the room, shoot the teacher and continue firing, the children acted on instinct and what they were taught which was to run and they did. they ran to the main road 100 yards away. my son and several of the other students were extremely brave in what they did. >>reporter: so many parents have the relief if their child made it home but it is bittersweet because other parents are suffering so great greatly.

>>bret: thank you, molly. as the community struggles to develop, stories of heroickism are starting to emerge, including that of school principal dawn hochsprung, lurching at the shooter. one of the principal's friends is not surprised, because she trained if a situation similar to what unfolded. >> she knew the health and safety of her children were paramount. she actually saved a great many lives by taking her action. the shooter had the capability of shooting more and the tragedy would have been far worse if not for her hour -- reactions. we did not think this would

become reality. she is truly a hero today. >>gregg: we hear that principal hochsprung implemented new security measures at the school including checking the i.d. of visitors not recognized by staff. now our panel who will be with us throughout the evening, senior writer for the weekly standard, steven hayes, and nina and charles krauthammer. these are tough to listen to. charles, we have listened to this a few days and this is the challenge of the president as he is ready for the rare service. any thoughts? >>reporter: you have a human tragedy and the family tragedies, community tragedy and then a national tragedy because of the way the news is spread.

the president's role is to try to crystallize that. i am glad to hear from ed henry this is not a time to speak about politics. there is something obscene about jumping in at a time of great national grief and in some ways disorientation with a program of political action before the dead are even interred. some decency requires people should at least step back, wait for the emotions to pass, not that you can't do analysis and try to think through what is behind what might have contributed, but, before people enact agendas they should allow the mourning to take place. >> this is, really, a consoler-in-chief role for president obama. that community...we have just scratched the surface of some of the stories and just seeing the pictures. >>guest: he is parent in chief tonight. i have a child in elementary

school and i got a call a few days ago and it was a lockdown drill, they do a recorded call and call back and tell you it is a drill. a couple of days later, winter concert, christmas concert, and after, the principal said to all of us parents gathered, these were pre-k and kindergarten, i want to thank you for entrusting your children to us. two hours later i hear the news and all of the words took on more meaning, more horrific meaning than you could imagine. now the president is consoler-in-chief, parent in chief, but at some point when you look at six-year-old bodies riddled with multiple bullets we have to start looking for ways to take the word "mass" out of mass murder. i hope he will move forward to do some sort of independent commission that has the urgency we had after 9/11. >> this is unbelievable sense

when you think of ed henry talking about aurora, tucson, and this keeps happening but this situation is different and so much worse because of what we are seeing, the pictures of the innocent helpless children. i have a six-year old niece, my brother is a teacher, you look at these situations and it is just so horrifying and you wonder how people can cover from it. the president, i don't envy him to have to come before these people and give them some sort of consolation to be able to move on. >>bret: there is so much we don't know, we don't even know this shooter's connection to the school. we don't know the mother's connection and she is a victim. she is the 27th victim. there is so much we don't know. >> it is a reason that so much of the discussion over the weekend and in some sense the

politicizing of this is regrettable. if you go back and pick up on what the others have said, you look at the president's role, and someone who does not agree with the president very often on policy, what the president has done well is given speeches and bringing people together in times like this. i still think the speech he gave for the memorial for gabrielle giffords was the bet speech -- best speech of his presidency and it took courage to avoid the pressure to get political quickly. like charles said i am glad to hear it sounds like he will not do that. it is fine to have a commission and look into this. if we didn't as a nation ask tough questions after an events like this i don't think we would be much of a nation. you have to have those discussions. i hope he does what he has done in the past and play the role as consoler-in-chief and talk to those who are grieving in the community and the nation. we are all telling personal

stories and everyone you talk to has a story or a connection or a way to identify with this. >>bret: every single person has reacted in the way we have been talking about. we are awaiting president obama's remarks and a service and a prayer vigil there for the victims of the elementary school shooting. next, police release new details what they found in their investigation. sometimes what we suffer from is bigger than we think ... like the flu. with aches, fever and chills- the flu's a really big deal. so why treat it like it's a little cold? there's something that works differently than over-the-counter remedies. prescription tamiflu attacks the flu virus at its source. so don't wait. call your doctor right away.

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>>bret: as you look live in newtown, connecticut, people are filing in for the prayer service. we told by the white house pool, the president now is meeting

with families devastated by the tragedy. one by one, a meeting, meeting with the families in the choose room, meeting individually with the victims' families and meeting with first responders. we are still learning new details about the massacre. police are revealing the gunman shot his own mother multiple time in the head before heading to sandy hook elementary school killing 26 others and then himself. >> the female found at the secondary scene location in newtown, is positively identified as nancy lanza with the death ruled a homicide. the mail suspect identified as the shooter has been positively identified as adam lanza he resided at that residence.

the cause of death is ruled a suicide by gunshot. >>bret: mike, so, now, we know the shooter had four weapons? report very four weapons and hundreds rounds of ammunition, hundreds were fired and hundreds were carried. the primary weapon was a assault rifle coupled with high-capacity 30-round clips. he carried two side arms, but a .9 millimeter and another was a flock. one was used as the first responders were approaching to kill himself with a single gunshot to the head. there was a fourth weapon, a shotgun, according to police and it was left in the car. all of the weapons are going to be key to the investigation. >> the weaponry is going to completely examined in the

laboratory. it will be historically searched so we can attempt to determine every path the weapons took since they were manufactured every time they were used with as much information as possible we can obtain relative to each weapon. >> we know best attack he killed his mother laying in beds four gunshot wounds to the head. she was still in her night clothes. >>bret: i mentioned this with steve haze, the fact that officials thought the mother may is worked at the school and that was the connection. now they say that is not the case. we still don't really know, do we, the connection between adam lanza and this school, do we? >>guest: it is still a mystery. the early information she was possibly a teacher or substitute teacher was false. articles now suggest she volunteered as a teacher's aide. unproven and unconfirmed.

we know from her sister in law she had some conflicts with the school district mostly over the education and treatment of adam but why that school was chosen and why those kids were killed still a mystery. >>bret: thank you, mike tobin, following the investigation of the tragedy in newtown. as we look again live in newtown, getting ready for the rare service and president obama meeting with the victims' families in classrooms in the very high school. we will head back this for more. the president set to deliver remarks on behalf of the grieving nation minutes from now. initiated. neural speeds increasing to 4g lte. brain upgrading to a quad-core processor.

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>>bret: you are looking live outside the newtown high school auditorium where president obama will speak in just a bit once a prayer service starts there, a vigil. people are filing in. we are getting word the volunteer effort from the american red cross is spectacular. not only to help the victims and the families and also the families in the school, but, really, everyone there. i can tell you the red cross is providing crisis and grief counseling for everyone and also handling, or handing out blankets and teddy bears to kids through the town with more than 100 volunteers pouring in from all over the country to newtown, connecticut, so, just a sense of the feeling on the ground from the american red cross and i can tell you that different church services and synagogues were packed throughout the region.

early tomorrow -- today, pope benedict xvi offer condole ends saying he is deeply saddened and is praying for the families of the victims and encouraged people to work for peace during the christmas season. >> we are in prayer for the families and hope to town their hearts and ease their pain. >> houses of worship talked about how this happened to the most innocent of young children.

joining me is a fox news contributor author of a book "god wants you happy," and a rabbi who helped counsel victims following the 9/11 attacks. rabbi, tell me where you are from. now, rabbi, your thoughts, tell us about trying to come to grips with this and what you tell people who come to you and say something like, how can god let this happen? >>guest: jewish rereligion is

family with terror and horrific events but it is not that god causes things to happen. god does not cause evil the people do. our responsibility is to realize if it is people who act, who do evil things, there are also people who do very wonderful blessed things and we take these from our religion the benefits, the beauty, coming together if a community, to offer comfort to the mounters -- mourners that we can offer but religion does not blame god, it is individual would do evil but the individuals pick up the pieces and re-create blessings in

people's lives. >>bret: i am catholic and this is rejoice sunday and pope benedict speaks of having the courage to rejoice. it is tough to rejoice in the wake of this past week. >>guest: it is. if i were there right now i would not be encouraging people to rejoice i would give them a hug. those things that remain in families that have suffered so tragically not only in acts like this, so horrific, but the loss of a child, no matter how it happened, what they remember is people who were there for him and who hugged them. second, if they were pleased with the gift of faith they also remember that maybe there is heaven. maybe there is a solution. i was with my church today and they were streaming out of church and one of them took me

aside and said, father, all i could think about was if my six or 7-year-old would have been there and suffered those last few minutes, i never thought of that, the last couple of minutes, maybe that sounds shocking but that is the reality of this. i believe deeply and i believe absolutely with what the good rabbi has just said that god does not cause evil. not only that, god was there present as this man abused his god given gift of freedom to do evil. just as god was there with his own son who died on the cross, by murder, at the hands of romans and cried for him i believe god was this for the children as they suffered their last. that is not a perfect solution or answer to this but it is a

going and the fact that there is eternal life in my opinion from the christian perspective, it is a great start and as time goes on and other questions come in as i am sure the rabbi and i have both receives, in time, there are deeper questions of how god would permit it to come into play. >>bret: thank you, father morris, and rabbi, thank you very much, your words are very thoughtful. more as we get ready to hear from rebound in newtown, connecticut. [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus presents the cold truth.

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>> still waiting for the start of the vigil in newtown, connecticut, where thousands are mourning the lives of those lost at the shooting. this is the auditorium as people are getting seated. the president is meeting with the victims' family members. some of the families, as well as people still streaming in from the outside holding balloons, in line, and also meeting with first responders, the president is. that job, the first spenders to the grizzly scene, truly amazing what they had to go through to secure the scene and look at what they looked at in the two classrooms, the nation's grief spewing on to the airwaves and we got now reaction from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. steve is live here in washington with more. steve? >> hear in washington, dc, shock and sadness, but, also, a new determination to look at all the possible ways another tragedy

could be prevented. outgoing senator joe lieberman, an independent from connecticut, had this observation about gun control. >> the same for democrats, republicans, and independents, to acknowledge two things: one, the strongest conceivable gun control laws will not stop all acts of violence. but, also, knowledge that the stronger our gun control laws are, the fewer acts violence including mass violence, will happen in our society. >> he goes further and propose as national commission, and senator durbin expressed support. tom ridge served on a state commission to investigate the virginia tech shootings five years ago and said this is a complex problem that needs careful attention. >> there are multiple players here tomorrow have a serious conversation about reducing the risk of this happening, we have

to start dealing with all the layers. it is about lifecy, and mental health canceling and getting the people the help they need at the outset. >> also turning the spot light on mental health screening and on cultural issues. senator lieberman and republican congressman from utah both suggesting today that the mass media including violent video games negatively influence impressionable teen boys and some call today for tougher regulations including a ban on assault weapons. >>bret: thank you, steve. now, bringing back our panel, senior writer for the weekly standard, steven stephen hayessd charles krauthammer. we talk about this earlier,

steve, and some called for gun control, today, and you heard some talking about mental illness and how big a problem that is and being looked at. policy-wise, beyond this speech tonight, because ed is saying that, really, that is not the focus. where does this go? >> we will have a big debate about gun control. we have seen that taking place. people like bloomberg has had this for a cause a good many years. i do hope we also have a sustained debate about civil commitment and how we deal with mental illness. it is very clear when you look back at the series of shootings we have had, our society has big questions to answer on how to deal with the mentally ill and dangerously mentally ill, the people, where there is a society that does not want to categorize people or commit people but

clearly what we are doing is not working. that has to be part of this broader discussion. >>bret: there was an amazing piece on twitter, "i am adam lanza's mother" written by a mother who described in very great detail having a son who threatened her and she had to deal with it. if you have not read it it is worth reading. it is about mental illness and how she essentially says that no one would take her seriously unless her child had a criminal record. >> that is tragedy. many years ago i would commit people against their will for the massachusetts general hospital to state hospitals if they were a danger to themselves or others.

it is hadder to do and not something any psychiatrist does lightly but the dilemma for a parent, you are in the terrible relationships, thing of loughner, from sue -- sue -- from tucson, everyone knew he was not well and knew he was dangerous. one student fled the class if he was there, she sat in the back so she could escape. you have a parent who knows this is going on and is told by the authorities because of the rise of civil liberties and the experience we had in the 50's of the abuse of incarceration of mentally ill, it becomes impossible and they say to a parent unless he does something our hands are tied. that is a terrible tragedy. the parents are caught in an impossible situation. it is not until the loughners

commit the atrocity that the state steps in and in his case it was obvious from the moment this happened. we do not know about adam lanza but it is a picture of a withdrawn and possibly autistic child, with video games and help closed in his word, a parent living alone with hip, obviously unable to cope with the terrible tragedy happens. what is the first thing he does on the horrible day? he kills his mother. this is a situation where i empathize with every parent or relative. where do you turn under the country laws? >>bret: the associate press is quoting the bureau of alcohol and tobacco and firearms saying adam lanza had been visiting a local shooting range but they do not know if he practiced there but they know his mother visited the shooting ranges several times, whether she took him

there to practice with her, they are thought saying, but he did go there. so the quote, again, we just don't know that much. we know that he took her guns to do this crime. >>guest: she was a gun collector and went to the shooting range with semi-automatic weapons. it is really important as we move forward in this, what charles brings up is absolutely right, it is very hard for a parent to commit a child and it is clear from the past mass killings there were warning signs and we may find that out now. the other component is the rise and proliferation of semi-automatic weapons which are tied to everyone of the mass killing. we have to keep in mind the body of a six-year old, these children from three to 11 wounds. they didn't have a chance. that has to be part of this

conversation. after 9/11, we had a conversation about rights. we de the time. the government has us under surveillance and we agreed we wanted to do that for the safety of our nation and that is a conversation we need to do about the safety of our children. >>bret: and the other side will say once this happens it opens the doors to all kinds of things and guns are under attack. this is not the time to, really, have this battle but --. >> we need a conversation about that. and the bullets were special kind of bullet that lodges and it is impossible to survive. we need to look at why civilians need this. i like the idea of a national commission because it is not just looking at gun aspect but it is looking at -- it is

complicated. it is the mental illness or the video games or the culture, or that the father is not around, a lot of different things going on here. it needs to be looked at. no question. >>bret: when i say this is not the time, the conversation will be happens this days ahead but we are waiting for the president's remarks as consoler-in-chief in newtown, accounting for all the people filing in in the auditorium. constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating? yeah. one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. approved! [ female announcer ] live the regular life. phillips'. campbell's has 24 new soups that will make it drop over, and over again. ♪

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that fits the somber mood as the city is dealing with the loss and the unthinkable tragedy, 20 children killed in that elementary school on friday morning. this comes as students across the country prepare to go back to school obviously on monday with the investigation ongoing officials are facing another challenge this in newtown. that is, trying to get things back to normal as much as possible for the young students who lived through the massacre early today with the connecticut governor asking if the children are ready to return to classes. >> i think that is a decision for parents to make. it is our obligation to open school. that is what we will do.

obviously, a lot people would like to get back to whatever "normal" will look like as quickly as possible. >>bret: right now it is not cheer when sandy hook elementary will re-open. we told the students from there should be assigned to attend other schools by wednesday. as i said, students from across the country are preparing to return to school, to class tomorrow, and school officials nationwide are looking at security in the wake of the master what more can be done to protect students at a time when budgets are tight? dominic is live in los angeles with that part of the story. >> we have seen a number of cuts at the federal and local levels and it does not need to cost that much according to the experts. the measures to keep schools

safe are well established that could prevented further terrible tragedies. what is needed, according to the advisor is community vigilance and more closely monitored access combined with better coordination with the authorities and they say that is not very hard to do. >> we do not want this to fade away in a month or two. the big problem is we feel we are in denial and this could never happen to our community or our schools. >> many parents contacted the schools to learn of their plan. >>bret: thank you, dominic. they were no older than six or seven, 20 children, gunned down

by a killer and he also murdered seven adults. tonight our country's thoughts and prayers offered up to the victims and their families as president obama joints the community in mourning for a memorial service and prayer vigil. live coverage of the tragedy in newtown, connecticuts continues as they line into the auditorium. that is next. ♪ [ male announcer ] you've reached the age where you don't back down from a challenge. this is the age of knowing how to make things happen. sowhy let erectile dysfunction get in your way? talk to your doctor about viagra.

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welcome back to special coverage, the pain and anguish can be seen in a number of

memorials dotting that usual quiet place, this one a collection of 27 handmade angels lining a hill side. and motorists over taken by the side to slow down and take a longer look today and others getting out of their cars to take pictures and each of the angels the work of 20-year-old eric muller, a private school art teacher and he says he didn't know any of the victims that died, but felt compelled to do something and the same grief really felt in every corner. united states and thousands of miles away in southern california, mourners there holding a prayer service to remember the innocent lives lost and their families now dealing with the tragedy. >> the other administrators who went towards him and tried to protect the kids, that just gets me, catches me. >> i woke up at like 1:30 this morning with a piece of scripture going through my head from jeremiah, and rachel

weeping and winner with her no more and i woke up crying and couldn't stop crying and thought you know, other people need to cry, too. >> our panel is back with us now. you know, we've talked a little about the policies surrounding all of this, but you know, dealing with it, charles, has been frankly tough for a lot of people. >> well, it's very hard. we have the mass media and ever since the kennedy assassination when these things happen we become a community. that was the really the first time we nationally mourned and it's very difficult to do. i think when we talk about it happening at the community level, at the family level, there are these mental health experts who go in and they counsel and i think they do an extraordinary job. but in the end we really come up against that question that you asked the rabbi earlier in the show for these, i mean, the most profound explanations

are often the most, or theological and we really don't have very good theological explanations, it's called the problem of the presence of evil and the presence of god, all loving god. as humans, we really don't. when you ask how do you counsel people, there's really nothing one can offer in the way of explanation, other than love and protection, really. >> and it's also tough to -- it's tough to do your job when you're there as a first responder, to respond to something like that. i don't want to say it's tough to be a media person, but it is to cover something like this when you're on the ground and try to get the story, to bring it out to people. a lot of people, you know, don't like reporters because they're asking people questions and saying, you know, will you talk to us. one of the fathers did talk to the cameras today and chose to

do so and here is what he had to say. >> she never missed an opportunity to draw a picture or make a card for those around her. i can't count the number of times emilie noticed someone feeling sad and rushed to find paper and draw a picture or encouraging notes. and her laughter was infectious and all those who had the pleasure to meet her, this world is a better place because she's been in it. >> and there's an instance to say get out of here, drop this story and leave them alone. and then there's this other instinct that there's this healing that needs to happen and this prayer service tonight is part of it. >> we're going to hear more stories like that, and more parents talk and it's so hard to listen to that father without choking up. and what bothers me, i

remember columbine and pain when the children were killed in colorado and i vividly remember virginia tech, was even bigger fatality-wise and more kids died and we have this like troubling short-term memory in this country where we fixate on this for a relatively short period of time and then we move on. so i hope those parents coming forward now and talking about these small children will actually provide some level of tipping point, some level of movement, some level of focus on our country to at least start the conversation and have a commission to look at this and try to take action and not just throw up our hands and wait for the next one to happen. >> and i also think that you look at the children ap it's so incredibly tragic, the picture that we bumped in and the picture was iconic, the woman sobbing in the parking lot that's actually the sister of victoria sotto, who was the teacher who saved some of her chil